


How to fall in love in 10 days

by makanaaaa



Series: Jaehyun, Xiao Jun and Chenle as the most annoying brothers you'll never meet [2]
Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Fake/Pretend Relationship, Friends to Lovers, M/M, chenle is annoying, jisung is a good friend
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-16
Updated: 2020-07-08
Packaged: 2021-02-28 06:28:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 14,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22759282
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/makanaaaa/pseuds/makanaaaa
Summary: Chenle and Jisung are best friends, have been since they were six, as Chenle often likes to remind the other.Chenle is also super annoying and in constant need of his brothers' approval and undying love, with currently only one task in mind - to find a boyfriend so that he could have at least one thing in common with his brothers.What could possibly go wrong?
Relationships: Park Jisung/Zhong Chen Le
Series: Jaehyun, Xiao Jun and Chenle as the most annoying brothers you'll never meet [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1636267
Comments: 12
Kudos: 72





	1. Day 1

**Author's Note:**

> This can be read as a standalone

How to find a boyfriend  
1\. Buy new clothes  
2\. Ask Ten to help you style them  
3\. Be nicer 

"That's it?" Jisung asks, looking at Chenle's list suspiciously. He doesn't seem to be too impressed, Chenle notices, but that's not what Chenle expected anyway and that's not why he called him here. 

"Well, obviously it's not finished, that's why I need your help," he points out, plopping down on the chair with a sigh. It's not always easy dealing with Jisung, having to explain everything to him and hoping he'll understand it quickly enough to be able to keep up with Chenle's ever-changing plans and all of his impulsive ideas. Chenle bears with it because he's a good friend, to everyone, but especially to Jisung, patience being one of his more prominent traits, which is precisely what allows him to not get annoyed when Jisung gives him the look he's giving him right now. 

"How am I supposed to help you? I don't think you even need the list, especially not with items like these," he says, pointing at the number one in confusion. "Why would you need to buy new clothes? There's nothing wrong with what you're wearing right now and if some boy doesn't agree with that, then he shouldn't be your boyfriend anyway."

He says it with such certainty, like he knows exactly what he's talking about, probably not aware that he sounds like a character from some cheesy kids show, foolishly talking about some ideal world where everyone's happy and no one needs to dress to impress! Chenle has to give him a sad smile. Poor, innocent, Jisung, always so naive and clueless, talking about boys like he has any knowledge on the subject or any idea about how the world works. Chenle knows he's not just saying this to make him feel better either, Jisung really does believe everything he's saying, and that's what makes it even sadder. 

"Of course you wouldn't understand," Chenle says back, rolling his eyes dramatically, "But it's fine! I didn't call you here to worry about any of that, I just need you to help me add more things to the list." 

It seems like Chenle lost him again, if Jisung's furrowed eyebrows are anything to go by. Feeling like he's starting to slowly lose his patience, Chenle stands up and walks over to sit on his bed, right next to Jisung. Before the other has the chance to say anything, Chenle speaks up. "Also, I need you to make me a better person," he says simply, going straight to the point. There's no use in dragging this any longer, it's not like Chenle has any time to waste, not now when both of his brothers have boyfriends. It's his turn now, and the only way to quickly carry out his plan is to make himself better, and the only person he can think of, that can really help him with that, is Jisung! 

Don't get him wrong, Chenle is perfectly happy with how he turned out to be, with all his little flaws that actually make him even cuter, in his humble opinion, but he also knows that in order to find a boyfriend, he needs to at least be a little nicer. And to, like, try harder. Like, in life, in general. Which is essentially the polar opposite of what's going on right now, and Chenle knows not everyone would be into this. Not everyone is willing to put up with him the way Jisung always does. Not everyone is patient and understanding like his best friend is. 

His best friend, who's currently looking at him like he can't quiet believe what Chenle is saying. Here we go again! 

"Can I say something now?" Jisung asks, just as Chenle's about to explain to him again why this is of great importance and why they need to act quickly and not waste any time on unnecessary questions.

Sighing loudly, Chenle falls back on the bed in resignation, reluctantly accepting that it probably wouldn't kill him if he let Jisung speak. Maybe it's better to get it over with at the beginning, with Jisung's inevitable questions, that is. But that boy is too curious about everything, too eager to get to the bottom of things and Chenle isn't particularly fond of it, especially not now. He's about to say something possibly mean to express how annoyed he is about how long this is taking, but then he remembers that patience is one of his more prominent traits, so he decides to hold his tongue. At least for now.

"Yes, yes, you can, I'm listening," he says, arms above his head and legs restlessly dangling from the edge of the bed, feet hitting the frame occasionally. Jisung notices, of course he does, and he puts his hand on Chenle's knee to still it.

"Okay. First, I have a question. But don't get mad, I just really don't get it," Jisung says and when Chenle looks up, he can see slight worry painted all over his face. Ridiculous.

He lifts himself up and gives Jisung a good look. "Jisung, let ME ask a question first. How long have we known each other?"

Jisung looks confused at first, but then he rolls his eyes, like he knows exactly where Chenle's going with this. "Chenle -" he starts, but Chenle's not having any of this.

"No, no, answer the question please!"

"Since we were six," Jisung recites in a monotone that suggests he's already repeated those words many times before.

Chenle is not fazed. "Exactly! Which means there's nothing you could say that would make me mad. Okay?"

"Okay," comes a dull reply. A beat passes, then two and three and Jisung's still not saying anything, just staring at Chenle in what the latter thinks is contemplation. Chenle thinks that if he's ever gonna strangle anyone, it might as well be Jisung in this particular moment. Jisung, whose lips are pursed and who scrunches his nose in annoyance before finally saying what's on his mind. "Where is this even coming from? This need to find a boyfriend as soon as possible. I don't get it."

Is this what was bothering him? This is what made him all nervous? Chenle can't believe that he needs to repeat himself again! Was their brief, but certainly comprehensive, phone call not sufficient for Jisung?

"I told you this already! Jaehyun and Xiao Jun got boyfriends! Both of them! And you know how they are! They've always been closer, being the twins and everything, but it's not just about that. They have more things in common, they get each other better, and now they both went and got boyfriends at the same time. Literally, on the same night! So, naturally, I need to do that too!" he says, taking a deep breath once he's done. Jisung, the poor thing, is still looking at him like he doesn't quite understand. This time, Chenle practically screams when he speaks next. "I don't know how I can make this any more clear to you!" 

"Well, you can start by telling me since when do you like boys," Jisung blurts out and Chenle knows he didn't plan on saying it like this, this abruptly, judging by the way he's looking at him now, like a deer caught in the headlights. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to just - It's just, you never said anything and -"

"Stop apologizing, Jisung, it's incredibly annoying!" Chenle says in the most annoyed voice he could muster. In reality, he's not that annoyed. Jisung's question actually makes sense and Chenle has to admit he never really gave this whole thing enough thought. Admit to himself, sure, but not out loud, not to Jisung. Instead, what he says is: "I just do, okay? I should ask you how you know that you DON'T like boys? Huh? You've never kissed a boy, how can you be sure that you wouldn't like it? Actually, no, I have an even better example. How do you know that you like girls if you never kissed one? Huh? Huh!?"

Jisung stares at him with wide eyes, before he lifts his hands up in surrender. "Jesus, calm down, it was just a question. And I don't know, by the way. I'm not really sure who I like," he says simply, like they're talking about their classes or something equally as unimportant. Chenle almost envies how calm the other seems to be about the whole thing.

He's also kind of shocked and can't believe Jisung's only mentioning this now. "Well, who's keeping secrets now?" 

"I haven't been keeping a secret," Jisung starts, getting up from Chenle's bed to go sit on the chair instead. "I'm just not sure. It's not like I've been thinking about it a lot - I haven't. It's just - I've never really liked a girl that much and I haven't liked any boys, but I think I think that both boys and girls are cute. I don't know," he concludes and Chenle notices how Jisung's not looking his way anymore, his head is hanging low and he seems almost shy. It's kind of cute, objectively, but Chenle also doesn't want the other boy to feel embarrassed about this, or whatever he's feeling right now that's making him look so small and dejected. 

Still, it's kinda funny, what Jisung just said, and Chenle can't exactly miss the opportunity to tease his best friend, not even in a moment like this. "You think you think?" he asks teasingly, a small smirk appearing on his face. 

Jisung looks up then, and even though he tries to make it seem like he's not happy with Chenle's comment, it's obvious that he's relieved they're back to teasing and done with the serious talk. The small smile he's trying to hide gives it away. Chenle would know, he knows everything about Jisung. "Shut up! I told you I haven't really thought about it that much anyway."

Chenle laughs, sitting up to have a better look at his friend. He decides that it's probably better to be on the same page, especially if he expects Jisung to help him with this thing. So, he tells him exactly how it is. "No, I get it. It's possible that I haven't exactly thought this thing through either."

That earns him a little smile from Jisung. "Okay. So why are jumping into this then? And please don't say it's because of Jaehyun and Xiao Jun, because that's not a good enough reason!"

"Well, it is because of them! But, it's fine that you don't understand, I'm not expecting that you do when you have a sister who loves you and only you!" Chenle exclaims, his voice getting progressively louder the more he speaks. "You never had to compete for her love when it's always been just the two of you!"

When he's finally done with his rant, he notices the look on Jisung's face, something akin to pity painted all over it and he immediately regrets saying anything. He doesn't want Jisung to pity him, he wants him to help him! But before he has the chance to say anything else, that he was joking and that it's not a big deal, Jisung speaks up. "First of all, both of your brothers adore you, with or without a boyfriend, and second of all, I really think you shouldn't get one just so that you could be like them. It's just not right. And I promise you that they don't care if you have a boyfriend or not, I'm sure of it. There has to be another way to -"

"Oh my god, you're a genius!" Chenle squeaks, interrupting Jisung mid sentence when he gets the best idea in the world. How did he not think of this before?

"- get closer to them," Jisung's saying, but it doesn't matter anymore, whatever he wanted to say is not important now that Chenle got the best idea in the world.

"No, no, I'm still doing the boyfriend thing," he says quickly, impatient to fill Jisung in on his amazing new plan, but impressed with himself above anything else, "but there is another way. How did I not think of this before?"

"I don't like where this is going," Jisung says carefully, but with determination, sending a sceptical look his way. Chenle ignores it, too busy trying to work out all the details of his amazing new plan. How is he such a genius? He thinks about all the kids in his class that are better than him in practically every subject, but would they be able to think of something like this? Something this genius, this innovative? Chenle knows they wouldn't and he pities them. All their book knowledge - finally useless for once in their lives. 

"Chenle!" Jisung says loudly, trying to get his attention back. When Chenle snaps out of his daydream, he sees an impatient look on his best friend's face, which is pretty unusual for him.

"Oh, you're gonna hate this," he admits excitedly, "I can tell you that right away. But it was basically your idea, so you have to get on board."

Jisung doesn't seem to agree with his logic. "How was it my idea?" he asks with disbelief. "I don't even know what you're talking about, and frankly I don't think I even want to know," he concludes, crossing his arms petulantly.

He looks kind of ridiculous, Chenle thinks, getting sulky like this all of a sudden. It's obvious he's quite annoyed about the whole thing, but Chenle also knows he's curious about his plan, too curious to resist asking to know more about it.

But Chenle can wait, he's extremely patient after all, so he grabs his phone from his nightstand and pretends to be engrossed in something, occasionally pressing his fingers on his home screen so that it would look like he's texting someone. 

It only takes a few seconds for Jisung to crack. "Fine, tell me!"

Chenle doesn't even try to hide his victorious smile. "Maybe I don't actually have to get a boyfriend," he starts, throwing his phone carelessly next to him to give all his attention to Jisung again, "Maybe I just have to make them think I have one, you know?"

It takes a few seconds, and Chenle notices the exact moment Jisung realizes what he's getting at, because his face changes drastically, his eyes get super wide and his mouth opens slightly. He looks comical and Chenle has to chuckle.

"No, no, no that's a horrible idea! These things never work out! And where would you even find -"

A poorly timed knock on the door interrupts Jisung's frantic blabbering, but Chenle is kind of glad because that was honestly getting nowhere and he hopes this interruption gives Jisung enough time to realize how brilliant his idea actually is.

"Come in!" he screams and the door slowly opens to reveal Xiao Jun and Jaehyun on the other side, a trail of cookies and two glasses of juice in their hands. 

"Hey, Jisung!" they say in unison and Chenle has to roll his eyes. How incredibly annoying that is! They step inside to leave the snacks on the table and Jaehyun goes to ruffle Jisung's hair. "We just thought you might be hungry," Xiao Jun says, "But we'll be going now," Jaehyun adds. "It looks like we interrupted something." 

Chenle frowns, not understanding what they meant, but then he sees Jisung, a mixture of shock, confusion and annoyance on his face and he feels the need to roll his eyes again. Typical Jisung and his inability to hide anything. 

"Anyways, you boys have fun," he hears one of his brothers say, but he's busy thinking, contemplating if what he's about to do is another one of his genius ideas or the stupidest thing he's ever thought of. "And please don't fight," the other adds, and this one is Xiao Jun, he's pretty sure.

"Why would we fight?" he hears himself ask, "Why would I fight with my boyfriend?"

There's a loud gasp, that one is Jisung, and two shocked faces looking at him. "Yes, it's true," he continues, the words practically falling out of his mouth on their own, "I also have a boyfriend now, Jisung right here," he adds unnecessarily, pointing at his friend, but avoiding his eyes. "Close the door on your way out, please!"

After the initial shock, his brothers quickly snap out of it. "That's great, Chenle!" Jaehyun exclaims, but he still looks a little confused at best. "We'll talk about this later," Xiao Jun adds and then they're out of his room, leaving him to be alone with Jisung once again. 

It's quiet for a while, with none of them saying anything, but even worse than that, it's awkward, even for Chenle, and that's not something that happens often. He somehow can't seem to be able to meet Jisung's eyes, which is ridiculous really, he's Chenle's best friend, has been since they were six, so there's really nothing to be scared of. 

With this new surge of confidence, Chenle finally looks up at Jisung to find him already looking back at him. "Look," he starts, but Jisung is faster.

"I'm gonna kill you!"


	2. Day 2

The next day, Chenle wakes up feeling like shit. After his exhausting and, pretty unsuccessful conversation with Jisung the night before, Chenle went to sleep feeling angry and annoyed at his best friend, even if the other didn't exactly turn him down. But, somehow, Jisung's "I'll have to think about it" got on Chenle's nerves more than a straight up rejection would. What is there to think about, really? It's a no-brainer, if you ask Chenle!

So, yes, Chenle went to bed feeling angry and annoyed, but this morning, he mostly just feels guilty. And if you knew anything about Chenle, you'd know that guilt is one of his least favourite emotions, right after boredom!

So now, not only is his plan falling apart because the main star doesn't want to participate in it, but he also feels tempted to call said main star and apologize for throwing him under the bus yesterday. Which is completely out of character for him, Chenle would even go as far as saying that it's unnatural. It's just not in his nature to apologize to people, not unless he did something terribly wrong, which is simply not the case here! 

He just wishes Jisung would start seeing things from his perspective, because then he would realize that Chenle is actually doing him a favour here. See, Jisung's life is not particularly interesting at the moment, some would even say it's pretty boring, and if he would agree to pretend to be Chenle's boyfriend, it would actually make his sad little life just a tiny bit brighter. It would bring him much needed excitement and thrill. A sense of purpose, if you will.

But, no, Jisung doesn't see it like that, he made that very clear yesterday and he also made it very clear that he's no fun and that he has zero sense of adventure. But Chenle already knew that. And if you're wondering why he chose Jisung to be his fake boyfriend and not one of his many friends - yes, it was an impulsive decision made in a split second, but even if he had more time to think about it, Chenle would've chosen Jisung anyway. Because, for him, Jisung is that person, the person you would call in a crisis, like when you need help hiding a dead body or something like that. Point is, Chenle trusts Jisung the most, which is why he's Chenle's only option here. And if his only option rejects him, he's screwed!

So, that's why he's currently contemplating whether to apologize to Jisung or just wait for the other to text him first. 

"This is ridiculous!" Chenle says out loud, a habit he's had since he was a child, the one that never quite went away. "Of course I'm not gonna apologize, not when I didn't do anything wrong," he says decisively, trying really hard to believe what he's saying is true, but the guilt is not letting him, that horrible feeling is practically eating him from the inside, urging him to just grab the phone and get it over with.

"Ugh!" Chenle grunts, annoyed at himself for being so weak all of sudden, annoyed at Jisung for being so difficult, but more than anything else, annoyed at his brothers for being the cause of all of this. 

Reluctantly, he grabs his phone and almost drops it when he sees there's a message from Jisung. Feeling uncharacteristically nervous, he takes a deep breath before realizing how dumb he's being. It's just Jisung, his best friend and, possibly, future fake boyfriend. There's nothing to be nervous about.

Washed with a new wave of confidence and determination, Chenle finally opens the message, only to find out that he was right. There really wasn't anything to be nervous about! Albeit very short, the message is straight to the point and exactly what Chenle wanted to hear.

from: Jisungie  
I'll do it 

Chenle squeals, throwing his phone to the side in favour of putting his hands in the air, feeling victorious. Things are finally starting to go the way he wants them to! Suddenly feeling very energised, he quickly gets up, ready to start his day.

The kitchen is empty when he enters, but that doesn't surprise Chenle. It's Saturday, after all, and if it wasn't for the whole Jisung thing and that horrible guilt that was eating him up until five minutes ago, he would still be in bed himself.

Realising that he won't get to eat until his mom wakes up and makes him breakfast, he opens the fridge and grabs a carton of chocolate milk, his favourite. It's not that he's being lazy, he would gladly make something himself instead of waiting for his mom to make it for him, only if he wasn't completely incompetent in the kitchen, as many incidents over the years have proved. 

Deciding that he doesn't want to risk waking everyone up by turning on the TV because he thinks he can actually enjoy the early morning quiet for once, Chenle opts to just sit at the kitchen table. He pulls his phone out of his pocket and then sees that he still hasn't answered Jisung.

Chenle thinks for a moment about what to write back. What do you even say in situations like these? Thank you? Thank you very much? Shaking his head, he just types the first thing that comes to his mind, deciding not to overthink it.

to: Jisungie  
Yes! I knew you would come around

Then, he checks the time on his phone. 8:23. And Jisung sent his text at 7:54. Why was he awake that early? Was he also bothered by this whole thing and couldn't sleep? For the hundredth time since he woke up, Chenle feels bad. 

"Okay, this has to stop," he mumbles to himself, deciding he's done with feeling guilty and bad and all those horrible feelings he's been experiencing lately. It's just not right, and Chenle honestly can't fathom how people just go around feeling like this all the time. It's truly a mystery, but it doesn't even matter because he's done with it. For good. 

Besides, he has better things to think about, like how he's gonna put his plan into action, which, now that he thinks about it, seems like a lot of work. Chenle has always been better at winging things, doing things first and then thinking about them, but only if he really has to, and this whole fake boyfriend thing looks like it requires a lot of planning and thinking in advance, basically all the things Chenle is not so good at. 

"Ugh!" he grunts, already feeling tired from all the thinking he's been doing for the last three minutes. But, he's not gonna get discouraged, no, because this thing is gonna work one way or another, he's sure of it. It has to, really, because he wants it to. Isn't that how the world works?

"It must be," he assures himself, taking a large sip of his chocolate milk. 

to: Jisungie  
Hey do you want to come over?  
Everyone is still asleep and I'm hungry

Chenle's stomach growls as he types the message. It would be amazing if Jisung came, because, unlike Chenle, he can actually make a few dishes. Nothing fancy, of course, just the most basic things, but at least he didn't almost burnt down the kitchen when he attempted to make fried eggs.

And it's not like it would take him a long time to get to Chenle's house, he literally lives on the same street, just a few houses away, right next to the park where they used to play when they were kids.

A few moments later, Chenle gets his reply. 

from: Jisungie  
Can't, mom wants me to go shopping with her

Chenle frowns, pouts, sighs and then pouts some more.

to: Jisungie  
This early??

The reply comes immediately this time.

from: Jisungie  
Yeah, we're going to the market

Throwing his phone to the side, he thinks about accepting his fate and waiting for his mom to wake up, but his stomach growls again. Left with no other options, he goes to open their snack drawer, grabbing a bag of crisps before he retreats to the living room. After a few minutes of scrolling through netflix, he opts for BoJack Horseman, deciding there is no better way to start his day than feeling bad for a fictional character and simultaneously feeling good about himself. He's half an episode in, when his mom walks in.

"Baby, what did we say about eating trash food in the morning, huh?" she asks, pointing at the half eaten bag on the coffee table. 

"What, no good morning? Straight to the nagging?" he tries, but judging by his mom's unimpressed face, she's not amused. Chenle rolls his eyes. "What was I supposed to do, I was hungry!" he whines, hoping his mom will find it cute like she usually does. 

Clearly, it works, because there's a small smile on her face and then she's coming up to him with her arms wide open. "Oh, my poor boy, he was so hungry that he had to put himself through eating snacks for breakfast," she says, hugging him despite his protests, "That must've been so hard for you."

"Ha ha, very funny!" Chenle says, trying to push his mom away, but secretly enjoying her hug. There's just something about moms and how warm they always feel that not even Chenle is immune to it. Eventually, though, his mom lets him go, but not before ruffling his hair, successfully messing it up. Chenle groans.

"I really like the hair, baby, I think blonde was a good choice," she says and then stands up, before going towards the kitchen. Before she enters, she turns around, a smug smile on her face. "I assume I don't need to make anything for you since you already ate, right?"

Chenle rolls his eyes. "Moooom, don't be difficult!" And then when she gives him a pointed look, he adds "Make me something nice, please?"

That seems to satisfy her, because the next moment, she's in the kitchen and Chenle can already hear the dishes clinking. Feeling content, he unpauses the episode and makes himself comfortable on the couch again. Not even a minute later, Jaehyun and Xiao Jun walk in. 

Chenle immediately panics, feeling completely unprepared for their inevitable interrogation, but Xiao Jun looks like he can still hardly keep his eyes open, so Chenle figures he has a little more time until it actually happens. 

"Good morning," they say in unison, of course they do, always parading how in sync they are that Chenle has to wonder how it's possible that it stills gets on his nerves, after all these years. It's his only kryptonite, he supposes, but it's fine, because soon, it's gonna be a thing of the past. Soon, he's gonna be an equal with his brothers, the third musketeer if you will, and before he knows it, they're all gonna be saying things at the same time! He can hardly wait, but in the meantime, he needs to sell them the boyfriend story, he needs to make it believable, otherwise, he'll always just be their little brother, the boyfriendless one, the one they love just a little less.

Forget planning and preparing, the operation Convince Jaehyun and Xiao Jun that I have a boyfriend and make them love me the most starts right now!

"So," he begins, trying to sound as natural as possible, "About Jisung, you know, my boyfriend?" He emphasizes the word boyfriend and then pauses, giving his brothers a meaningful look. "I'm sure you have a lot of questions, so, ask away!"

His brothers share one of their looks and Chenle has no idea what it means. Then, Jaehyun goes to sit next to him on the couch, while Xiao Jun occupies one of the armchairs.

"Well, I think it's great," Jaehyun says, putting his hand on Chenle's shoulder. "I mean, I was a little surprised, I'm not gonna lie, but if you're happy, I'm happy too!" There's a big smile on his face, but Jaehyun's always smiling, especially since he got together with Doyoung, so that doesn't really mean anything. Chenle smiles back at him and then turns his head to look at Xiao Jun, the smart one, the one that's gonna be hard to convince, because if anyone's gonna be suspicious of his sudden relationship with his childhood best friend, it's gonna be Xiao Jun. 

"Since when do you like boys?" he asks, direct as always, his eyes squinting in a way that suggests he's not really buying any of this. Chenle opens his mouth to say something, he doesn't even know what, but Xiao Jun is faster. "Also, Jisung? Really? You guys have been best friends since you were kids. Since when do you like him like that? I never noticed anything. Also, how likely is it that all three of us like boys? It just doesn't seem -"

"Hey, hey, slow down, Jun," Jaehyun butts in, sending their brother a disapproving look, "You're gonna scare him off."

Chenle frowns. "Scare me off? I'm not an animal, Jae."

"It just doesn't make a lot of sense," Xiao Jun continues, "That's all."

This is not going according to his plan, Chenle realizes bitterly, but he's not gonna get defensive, it wouldn't get him anywhere, even though there's nothing he would like more right now than to snap at Xiao Jun. The best thing right now is to stay calm, until the situation presents itself and he can flee as far away as possible from the devil himself in the form of his older brother.

"I get why you're wary, Jun, I would be too," he lies, just saying anything now, wanting to appease the other so that he can get away from this situation as soon as possible. "But you don't need to worry, everything's fine!" Chenle throws him a big smile, before getting up from the couch. "Sorry, I have to go now, but we'll talk later," he promises, already in the hallway, putting his shoes on and praying that his mom won't catch him before he manages to slip out. 

"Where are you going?" Jaehyun asks, probably confused that Chenle's even out of bed at this hour, let alone ready to leave the house. 

"I'm going to my boyfriend's," he yells to make sure that both of them hear him, smiling smugly, even though they can't see him from the living room. 

He grabs a jacket on the way out and the last thing he hears before shutting the front door is his mom screaming after him, demanding that he explains everything about this boyfriend of his. Oops, that wasn't really supposed to happen, Chenle thinks, wondering if his mom will give him hard time about this. He wasn't exactly planning on deceiving his whole family, but what's done is done, he'll deal with it later.

Right now, the most important thing is to actually make a plan, come up with a great story without any flaws so that something like this wouldn't happen again. The next time Xiao Jun asks him about it, Chenle will be completely prepared that his brother won't have any reason not to believe him.

He puts his hand in his pocket, relieved when he feels his phone there. He's actually impressed with himself for remembering to take it with him, especially after leaving in such a hurry. 

to: Jisungie  
I'm coming with!  
IF you buy me a breakfast

Jisung better not turn him down now, because he doesn't know where else he would go. The library? Chenle has to laugh loudly at that thought, which startles a woman walking past him. No, definitely not the library, and the coffee shop is out too, since he didn't remember to bring any money. His only option is Jisung, who still hasn't texted him back, by the way, so Chenle decides to just call him.

"Hey," Jisung answers after a few seconds, "What's up?"

"What's up?" Chenle asks incredulously, "I texted you, did you not see my text?"

"No, sorry, we're just about to head out." Chenle can barely hear him from all the background noise and he can practically see Jisung hectically running around the house, getting ready at the last minute while his mom yells at him to hurry up. 

"Okay, I'll be there in three minutes, I'm already on my way," he says, hanging up before Jisung has the chance to question him further.

It's gonna be a great day, Chenle decides. The weather is particularly nice this morning, with birds chirping and spring just around the corner, there's no school and Jisung's mom adores him, so he's bound to get something out of it. A nice piece of cake, maybe? Or his favourite milk tea from that boba place they're gonna pass on the way to the market?

Either way, he's happy, and by the time he gets to Jisung's house, his best friend and his mom are already outside, waiting for him. 

"Chenle, sweetheart," Jisung's mom calls out as soon as she sees him, "Jisung just told me you haven't had breakfast yet." She envelops him in a big hug, like she hasn't seen him in forever, even though Chenle was at their house three days ago where he spent a good portion of his visit chatting with her. "We're going to that bakery you like first and then we can go shopping, okay?"

Chenle smiles lovely at her, flashing her his signature smile, the one many people have said was his best feature. "Thank you!"

"Of course, baby!" she says, ruffling his hair playfully. "Now get in the car, boys!"

Chenle turns to look at Jisung and has to smile when he sees the state of his hair. "What happened to you?" he asks teasingly, putting his hand over Jisung's hair in an attempt to flatten it. "You look like you put your head in a washing machine!" 

Jisung rolls his eyes, but doesn't try to move or swat Chenle's hand away. "It just won't stay the way I want it to, it's so annoying!" he says, frowning a little.

Chenle gives him a better look. "It's actually not that bad," he lies, "It looks decent now that I fixed it." It doesn't, but Jisung believes him, if the small smile he gives Chenle in return is anything to go by.

"Anyway, we have to talk about the thing," Chenle stage whispers, emphasizing the last two words. "My brothers have already started questioning me, especially that bitch Xiao Jun, and I didn't know what to tell them! So we need to come up with a good story! We can do that over breakfast!"

For some reason, Jisung looks scandalised. "Not in front of my mom, we won't! Also, I kinda thought this won't be a big thing. Like, you would tell them about it and that would be it," he says, naïve and clueless as always. Chenle shakes his head in disbelief.

"Boys!" Jisung's mom screams from the driver's seat. 

Chenle takes him by the arm and they start walking towards the car. "Poor little Jisung, you couldn't be more wrong. The fun is just starting!"


	3. Day 3

"Absolutely not! I'm not doing that!"

"Jisung, we've been over this," Chenle says exasperated, rolling his eyes for, what feels like, a thousandth time since they started the conversation. "You agreed to help me and that includes doing everything I ask you to! It's very simple!"

Jisung slowly exhales through his nose, a clear sign of his annoyance, but Chenle isn't phased. He'll let Jisung let all of his frustration out first, if that's what it takes for him to get it together and get to actually helping him. Even if that entails dealing with constant complaining, occasional sighing and a lot of eye rolling from the other boy, he'll endure it all if it eventually gets him what he wants.

"Fine," Jisung finally agrees, just like Chenle knew he would, just like he always does in the end. It's comforting to know that Jisung will always end up doing exactly what Chenle wants, but Chenle can't help but wish that the process of putting him up to it isn't so damn long.

Like, for example, this conversation right now. Pretty pointless, if you ask him, especially since they already had the exact same one yesterday! They already constructed the plan (well, mostly him, really) and Jisung approved phase number one, saying he'll do it and how it's actually not as bad as he thought it would be. So why is he acting like a little bitch now? 

"But, to be fair" he hears Jisung say, effectively interrupting his thoughts, "You didn't mention anything about a kiss when we talked yesterday. I have every right to be upset, you know?"

So what? He forgot to mention a tiny, barely significant detail and suddenly he's the bad guy? 

"Oh, stop being a baby! Anyway, we're not doing it today, you can relax," he says, grabbing a bite from his sandwich. Glancing at Jisung proves him that, yes, he does, actually, relax at that, looking relieved and comfortable again. Good. Chenle doesn't have any use of him if he's panicking every two seconds. "Mmm, actually, there's something I wanted to tell you."

Jisung throws his hands in the air, sighing dramatically. "Great, another surprise."

Chenle doesn't exactly appreciate his sarcasm, but he lets it slide. "This one's good," he promises, lying just a little bit. It is good for someone. "You know how you love parties?"

"No?"

"Well, I do. And my cousin is celebrating her 18th birthday this Friday, which I thought would be the perfect opportunity for us to present as a couple!" Completely reasonable if you ask Chenle, but something about Jisung's expression tells him that he doesn't share the sentiment.

"Oh, hell no!" he says, almost shouting, but then he catches himself, probably remembering that walls in Chenle's house are thin as a paper, so his next words come ut quieter, but definitely not softer. "Chenle, I can't lie for shit, you know that, and I still agreed to this! But, I'm not gonna do it in front of your whole extended family, that's too much!"

And, okay, it's been kind of naïve from Chenle's side to assume that this would play out like he wants it to without him needing to sacrifice something. It's becoming clear that, in order to get Jisung to do this thing properly, Chenle will need to give him something in return.

"All right, fucker, what do you want?"

When Jisung just keeps staring at him, confusion written all over his face, Chenle rolls his eyes and continues. "A favour for a favour. You do this for me, no questions asked, and I'll do something for you. Whatever you want, just not something ridiculous, you know."

"That's not why I don't want -" Jisung starts and then stops, quite abruptly, tilts his head like a dog and Chenle knows he got him. "Wait, anything? Can it be an Xbox?"

Chenle gives him a flat look. "No. Nothing too expensive, if you're that set on it to be a material thing."

It takes about 10 seconds, but then Jisung's nodding, extending his hand for Chenle to shake it.

"You're ridiculous," Chenle mutters, but shakes his hand anyway. 

It's okay, Chenle still has some money left from his last birthday. He didn't exactly plan on spending it on Park Jisung, but, oh well. There will always be more birthdays, he supposes.

"Okay," he says, standing up. "Now, let's go to the kitchen and do exactly like we talked yesterday, all right?" 

Jisung stands up as well, just not as gracefully, Chenle's desk chair flying backwards at the force. "Yeah, unlike the kiss, which you failed to mention."

Chenle gives him an unimpressed look. What's with this guy and his obsession with their potential kiss?

"What?" Jisung asks, obviously set on making Chenle's life more difficult with his every word. "I'm bringing it up again because we never actually discussed it."

"We will," Chenle promises, but hopes it won't actually come to that. If he can avoid kissing his best friend, that's exactly what he will do, but he's not above actually going with it if it will wipe Xiao Jun's smug smile off his face. He can just hope things won't have to go that far. "But not now. And if everything goes according to the plan, we might not even need to kiss. I did say that kissing would be our last resort, if everything else fails."

Which won't happen, he reminds himself. Not with a plan like his. 

"Which is probably exactly what's gonna happen," Jisung supplies unhelpfully, suddenly standing right next to him. Chenle gives him the stink eye.

"Not if we do this right," he says, slapping the front of Jisung's baseball cap, making it fall down on his face. "That's what you get for wearing a cap indoors. Now, kitchen!"

Before they leave his room, Chenle takes Jisung's hand in his, something he often does when Jisung's being too slow and Chenle's being too impatient, but it feels different now. It's like there's pressure or something, coming with the knowledge that they'll be watched. And judged, in Xiao Jun's case. 

"Your hand is sweaty," he informs Jisung. It's kinda gross, but he doesn't mind it that much. He's pretty sure his own hand is sweaty too.

"I'm kinda nervous," Jisung admits, always so open about his feelings, too open for his own good, but right now it gives Chenle a sense of familiarity, something he desperately needs at the moment, as he's about to step into the unknown. Great, now he's singing that song again and it took him ages to get it out of his head when he first watched the movie.

"There's no need," Chenle says, deciding not to mention his own nerves. 

They finally step out of the room.

It's weirdly quiet in the house, which is unusual since Chenle knows for a fact that both of his brothers are home at the moment. His parents are out, thankfully, his mom mentioning yesterday that they will be having a date night or something, which is exactly why he decided to do this now. Distantly, he's aware that they're going to find out about it anyway, given that he's going to be parading Jisung at the party on Friday, but he's still happy he doesn't have to deal with that now.

"Okay, laugh loudly at the next thing I say, so that they know we're here," Chenle says, nudging Jisung to make sure he has his attention when he notices how lost the kid looks. "Jisung, focus!"

"Right, right, sorry," he says softly and then proceeds to do the fakest laugh Chenle's ever heard. It's loud and sounds completely weird coming out of Jisung's mouth, but it does the job, because the next moment, Jaehyun comes out of his room, looking utterly confused.

"Oh, Jisung, it's you. Sorry, I thought it was Fran Drescher," he says, barely managing not to laugh in the middle of his own joke. Which was terrible, if you ask Chenle.

"Who the fuck is Fran Drescher?" Jisung whispers next to him.

"I have no idea. Just ignore him. But, don't forget about our plan," he adds when he feels Jisung's hand slipping from his own. His friend sends him an apologetic smile, nods and then grabs his hand even tighter.

"We were just going to the kitchen to grab some food and then we're gonna watch a movie," Chenle says the words he previously practised in his room, swaying his and Jisung's clasped hands for Jaehyun to see them clearly. 

"Oh, okay. Do you mind if I join you guys? Xiao Jun went out and I'm kinda bored."

Dammit. Xiao Jun was supposed to be home as well, where the fuck did he go all of a sudden? Also, how typical of Jaehyun, asking for his company only when Xiao Jun is unavailable. 

"Where did he go?" Chenle asks, trying not to sound too interested. He can feel Jisung radiating awkwardness the longer they're standing in the hallway, even though he's not saying anything. Hopefully, it stays that way because Chenle can't even imagine what might come out of Jisung's mouth when he's in a state like this. 

Jaehyun shrugs. "He mentioned something about Taeyong and needing to talk to him. You know how I just shut that shit out." Then, a huge smile spreads over his face. "Maybe Jun's gonna break up with him."

Chenle doubts it, but shrugs anyway. "Maybe."

He starts walking towards the kitchen, pulling Jisung with him, who seems happier and more like himself as soon as they're out of Jaehyun's line of sight. "That was scary," Jisung says when they reach the stairs. "I felt like he was seeing right through me."

Behind them, they hear Jaehyun shouting. "I'll be down in a minute. Don't start the movie without me!"

"What are you talking about?" Chenle asks, ignoring his brother and turning to look at Jisung. "He didn't see shit. Jae's kinda dense. It's not him we need to worry about anyway, it's Xiao Jun."

They enter the kitchen and Chenle goes to grab some snacks and drinks. Jisung sits down on a stool, still not looking entirely convinced.

"Maybe it's better that Jun's not here, he would definitely see that something's wrong. You look like a mess, Jisung, get it together!" Chenle says, trying not to sound too harsh, knowing that wouldn't do anything to help with Jisung's nerves and would probably make him feel even worse.

Jisung sighs, his hand frantically going through his hair, something Chenle noticed he does when he's nervous. It would be almost cute if it wasn't pitiful. 

Chenle comes up to him, handing him the snacks and they move to the living room. Soon enough, they hear lazy footsteps, signalling that Jaehyun is near.

"Okay, just do as we planned and you'll be alright," he whispers, leaning closer to Jisung. The other boy nods, takes a deep breath and then puts his arm around Chenle. Leaning into his touch, Chenle tries to relax and look as natural as possible, putting his head on Jisung's shoulder. It feels weird and absolutely not like something they would ever do, but that's the whole point, he supposes. They shouldn't look like Chenle and Jisung, the best friends, they have to look like Chenle and Jisung, the boyfriends. However weird it feels, Chenle thinks they're nailing it.

"Why do you guys look constipated?" is the first thing Jaehyun asks when he enters the room, before he sits on the couch next to them.

Jisung tenses immediately, his whole body going stiff at Jaehyun's words, so Chenle tries to subtly elbow him, not wanting his brother to notice anything.

"Ow!" Jisung cries out, capturing Jaehyun's attention who sends him a worried glance in return. Chenle is going to fucking lose it with this guy.

"Anyway," he says loudly, just wanting to move on from the general awkwardness that's surrounding them, "What do you wanna watch?" he asks, looking up at Jisung, "Baby."

Normally, he would find it hilarious, the way Jisung's eyes go wide at the pet name and how his mouth keeps opening, like he's gonna say something, and then closing again, without uttering a single word. If Chenle needs to draw a comparison, he would say Jisung basically looks like a fish out of water. Normally, he would find it hilarious, but right now, he just wants Jisung to fucking say something. He elbows him again.

"Whatever you want, Lele." And okay, that was not that bad, Chenle thinks, although he would prefer if Jisung used a pet name as well. Honey? No, that's too pathetic. Angel? Angel kind of suits him, Chenle thinks.

"Aww, that's so sweet, you guys!" Jaehyun coos from his side of the couch, startling both of them, judging by how Jisung practically jumps at his words. "Young love," he continues, practically chirping and Chenle can't even hide his smile. This is almost too easy. 

"But since you're both being little indecisive bitches, I'll just choose the movie, okay?"

Chenle snorts. Classic Jaehyun. Jisung lets out a scandalised sound. 

"It's because he grew up with an older sister," he tells Jaehyun, not wasting an opportunity to tease his best friend, "They only talk about their feelings and paint each other's nails. Jisungie here is sensitive to a language like that, we shouldn't swear around him."

Both he and Jaehyun lose it from how hard they're laughing and Jisung hits his arms repeatedly, something that's bound to leave a bruise, but he's sporting a little smile too. Chenle's arm hurts like a bitch, but Jisung seems to relax after that, looking and sounding more comfortable and even joking with Jaehyun, so Chenle deems it worth it. 

By the time Xiao Jun comes back, they're already half through You've got mail, courtesy of Jaehyun, and Chenle's on the verge of falling asleep. He just feels so warm and comfortable in Jisung's arms, that he can't imagine ever getting up. Somewhere during the night, Chenle kind of completely leaned into Jisung, making himself comfortable on the other's chest and they kind of stayed that way. Jisung didn't seem to mind it either. 

"What a lovely sight," Xiao Jun deadpans, almost a reflex of his at this point to always be sarcastic, but Chenle can see that he's in a good mood. His eyes are sparkling and there's a hint of smile on his face. What Chenle sees next, placed conveniently on his brother's neck, is something he never wants to see again.

"Eww, is that a hickey?" he screams, suddenly completely awake. He sits up and throws a look of disgust at his brother. "Why are you just parading it all over the house, put a scarf on, for fuck's sake! What if mom and dad see it?"

Xiao Jun just smirks, like the devil he is and then winks at him. "Chill, you'll find out about these things soon enough. Am I right Jisung?"

Jisung gasps, looking scandalised once again. Chenle supposes this family is just too much for him, with their blatant behaviour and questionable life choices. It's kind of a miracle how they even became friends in the first place and even bigger miracle how they stayed ones for so long.

With another wink, directed at Jisung this time, Xiao Jun goes up the stairs, leaving as abruptly as he entered the room.

"I guess they didn't break up after all," Jaehyun says, not sounding nearly as disappointed as Chenle thought he would. 

"You don't hate Taeyong as much anymore, do you?" he asks, finally voicing something he's been suspecting for a while now.

Jaehyun looks offended for a second, but ultimately just shrugs, face void of any emotion. "Just don't tell Doyoung."

Chenle snorts. "Doyoung only hated him because you did and he probably wanted to get into your pants."

For some reason, Jaehyun smiles at that, like a lovesick fool he is. Chenle and Jisung share a look, both pretending to barf. 

"Okay, let's continue watching the movie," Jaehyun says, taking the remote from the coffee table while trying to suppress a yawn.

Wait, what? 

"You're not gonna go and hang out with Xiao Jun?" he asks, not able to hide his surprise.

"No? I wanna finish the movie with you guys. We're having a great time, aren't we?"

Jaehyun choosing him over Xiao Jun? Is it possible that his plan is already working? Delighted, he turns to look at Jisung, wanting to share his excitement with him, but finds him looking at his phone instead. When he notices Chenle's eyes on him, Jisung looks up and gives him a small smile. 

"What?" he asks when Chenle keeps staring at him, grinning like a maniac.

"Nothing, I'll tell you about it later." In the background, he can hear Jaehyun unpausing the movie, Meg Ryan's voice filling the room once again.

"Okay," Jisung says, smiling widely now, his eyes almost disappearing in the process. He looks like a baby chick, it's ridiculous, really.

Chenle laughs. "Why are you smiling?"

"Why are YOU smiling?" Jisung asks, bursting into laughter as well. He pushes Chenle off of him, sending him off the couch, and then catches him before he almost hits the floor.

"Ugh, Park Jisung!"

Jaehyun clears his throat, startling them both again. "That was seriously the cutest, young love and all that, but can you stop fucking screaming and start paying attention to the movie, please? Joe is about to dump his annoying girlfriend, this is important!"

Chenle and Jisung look at each other and start laughing once again. 

This has been a good day.


	4. Day 4

It's no secret that Mondays are the worst. Everything about them is horrible. Monday is the farthest day from Saturday, which is arguably the best day of the week, so Chenle usually spends his Mondays daydreaming about all the things he wants to do the next weekend. He also hates waking up early, missing breakfast because he's always in a hurry and dealing with a grumpy Xiao Jun in the early morning, but most of all, he hates school.

There isn't one class he's interested in, except maybe for PE, but only on the days when they get to play basketball, almost all of his classmates are idiots (but he's still okay with everyone - you never know if or when you're gonna need something from someone) and his first neighbour and the person he walks to school with every day is the most annoying person on the planet. Coincidentally, she's also one of his best friends, but that friendship is mostly circumstantial. When someone has lived next door since you were two and your mothers kept arranging playdates since you could talk, it's hard not to end up being friends. That being said, Yuna is still the most annoying person on the planet and Chenle loses brain cells every time he talks to her.

"And then you know what he said to me?" she asks, too loud and excited for 07:45 in the morning, practically draping herself over Chenle in an attempt to get him to pay attention to her story. When Chenle doesn't answer her, she shakes his shoulders rather harshly. "Do you?"

"Ow, why are you so strong?" Chenle asks as he pushes her away from him, rubbing his shoulder in pain. Yuna seems unbothered, quickly catching up to him again to intertwine their arms. Chenle lets her because it's easier that way. It's still too early for him to even keep his eyes properly opened, let alone pick a fight with Yuna.

"Chenle, don't you wanna know what he said to me?" he hears her say, impatient and whinny, tugging his right arm to get his attention back.

And that - that's the final straw for Chenle. He's been dealing with this for the last half an hour, ever since Yuna got to his house this morning, a good twenty minutes before she was supposed to, her energy level crazy high for the time of the day when most people can't even form coherent sentences yet. If he has to hear about this for much longer, he'll literally go insane. "Oh my god, Yuna! You're talking about a video game, for fuck's sake, do you really need to tell me about every single conversation you have with Talbott?" 

"Aww cute, you remember his name," she says, not at all phased by Chenle's outburst. That only stirs him up more.

"That's because you won't shut up about him!"

This whole conversation is so stupid, but also so them, that Chenle doesn't even know why he's getting so upset. Yuna never talks about anything even remotely interesting to him, and usually it's fine, but if he has to hear one more word about this stupid game, he's gonna shoot himself in the head.

"So?" she asks after a few seconds of silence. Jesus fucking Christ.

With a loud sigh, he resigns himself to the fact that he'll have to listen to this shit for the next few minutes. "Just tell me."

Yuna opens her mouth, but then they hear footsteps behind them, getting louder and louder, and Chenle prays to whoever is listening that it's Jisung, finally coming to his rescue. When he turns around, sure enough, his best friend is practically running up to them, leaning his upper body down and trying to catch his breath once he's caught up with them.

"Hey! Wait a second, I can't breath," he says, panting, one hand over his heart and the other clutching Chenle's arm, pulling his sleeve in the process. It's mildly irritating, but nothing compared to Yuna's Hogwarts mystery horror story.

"Thank god you're here! She wouldn't stop talking about that stupid game and that boy character and she kept insisting on telling me everything about their latest conversation and -"

"Oh, I know," Jisung interrupts him. "They finally went on a date. Yuna told me all about it last night," he says once his breathing returns to normal. Chenle eyes him suspiciously. "That's some major progress with Talbott, it's like it was only yesterday when he wouldn't even admit you two were friends," Jisung continues, this one directed at Yuna, who keeps nodding at his every word. 

Did all of his friends lose their minds all of a sudden? Because that's certainly what it seems like to Chenle.

"Jisung, why do you let her bore you with that nonsense? You don't even play that game! You're just enabling her obsession with an animated character by letting her talk about it all the time!"

"I don't mind. Also, I like Harry Potter too, so -"

Whatever pointless thing Jisung was going to say next gets interrupted by Yuna's unnecessarily loud screech. And that's coming from Chenle, whose laugh was once described as the loudest and the most annoying sound on the planet. He still hasn't fully forgiven Ten for that statement. "Are you guys holding hands?" she asks, looking something between surprised and excited. 

Chenle is confused for about two seconds, because what the fuck is she talking about, surely he would know if he was holding someone's hand, until he looks down, and, sure enough, Jisung's giant hand is clasped with his. He quickly pulls his hand back, sending a questioning look Jisung's way, who looks just as confused as Chenle feels.

"How did that happen?" Chenle asks, not knowing what else to say, but needing to say something, because it's weird. It's weird that Jisung most likely mechanically took his hand and it's even weirder that Chenle didn't even notice it.

"It must be from all the practicing we did yesterday," Jisung says softly, careful not to let Yuna hear him, giving Chenle a sheepish smile. 

He looks apologetic and kind of embarrassed, and Chenle would normally find it funny, if he wasn't still weirded out by the whole thing. Not by the holding hands part, he's rather indifferent about that, but the not noticing part of it. Like, how do you not notice that someone is holding your hand? It doesn't really make sense.

"Guys, what's going on? Why are you suddenly holding hands? You were never like that before," Yuna points out, always the one to state the obvious, especially when it's completely unnecessary.

Before Chenle gets to say anything, Jisung is already speaking. "Yeah, it was just an accident." An awkward laugh accompanies his words and that's such a Jisung thing to do that Chenle relaxes immediately. There's nothing to worry about, anyway. This is actually a good thing, if he thinks about it, because they need as much practice as possible if they want to look natural on Friday. The fact that Jisung just casually grabbed his hand without even realising it shows him that they're getting there. He briefly considers taking Jisung's hand again, just for extra practice, but the smug look on Yuna's face makes him want to do everything in his power to never see that expression again. So, he decides against it. There will be plenty of time for practice anyway.

Yuna squints her eyes. "That's a weird accident."

"You're a weird accident!" Chenle bites back. Next to him, Jisung tries and fails to stifle a laugh.

Yuna gasps. "Oh, I'm telling your mom you said that!"

"I don't fucking think so!"

Nothing fun ever happens at school and today is no exception. Chenle barely makes it through calculus and literature, on the verge of falling asleep the whole time, the sound of Jisung's pen as he's taking notes the only thing keeping him awake. 

During lunch, Beomgyu joins them in the cafeteria and they spend the next half an hour talking about the band they'll never start, but love fantasizing about regardless.

"I'm telling you, with my guitar skills and Chenle's voice, we could really make it! That acoustic shit is getting hot again. And I've also been practicing my electric guitar, so we could go in that direction as well! And Jisung and Yuna could like, rap, and Yuna would also be the face of the band and like, the people person who would get us gigs and charm everyone," Beomgyu says practically all in one breath, eyes huge with excitement and face glowing as he's talking about his favourite subject. He's been really into band stuff ever since he watched that Swedish movie about a high school kid who starts a band with his best friends a few months ago. The guy also goes on and falls in love with another guy, but that's beside the point. The point, for Beomgyu at least, is that the four of them have too much talent to waste it by not being in a band together. Chenle kinda agrees, but he's not as passionate about it.

"Calm down, your crush is showing," he says, giggling when Beomgyu sends him a death glare and a mumbled fuck off. Next to him, Jisung elbows him in the ribs and when Chenle turns his way, he sees a disapproving look on Jisung's face. "What? It's not exactly a secret, is it?"

"Well, I think it's a great idea!" Yuna says loudly as she takes a sip of her strawberry smoothie. Her quietness up until now has been unusual, but definitely not unwelcome. Chenle appreciated it while it lasted.

"I agree! I think I would be an awesome rapper!" Jisung adds, looking too sure of himself for someone who has never tried rapping in his life. Chenle tries not to snort too loudly.

"I would!" Jisung insists, shoving him lightly. 

"All right, all right." 

All this band talk is great, but they have about 5 more minutes till the end of the break which gives Chenle approximately 3 minutes to finish his sandwich with enough time to walk to his class without being late. He takes a big bite and a sip of his chocolate milk to help it go down. 

"That combination is disgusting!" Beomgyu says, motioning at his food. Chenle gapes at him.

"You're literally eating garlic bread right now! And I could smell it the moment I saw you, like, I could smell it from inside your bag. If you're planning to get that kiss any time soon maybe consider bringing something else for lunch -"

His words get interrupted by Jisung who puts his hand over Chenle's mouth in an attempt to shut him up. "All right, all right," his best friend says, standing up and dragging Chenle with him. "We'll be going now, can't be late for chemistry."

Next to Beomgyu, Yuna is trying to stifle her giggling and Chenle sends her a playful wink. And Beomgyu - well, he looks positively murderous, but that's something for future Chenle to worry about. Right now, the only thing he's worried about is how he's gonna survive an hour and a half of the worst scientific discipline in the universe.

"You're so annoying," Jisung tells him when they're far enough that their friends can't hear them anymore, but he's smiling, which means he found it funny too.

"You thought it was funny, don't lie."

"Only a little bit."

The walk to their class takes an annoyingly long time, with hallways full of people who are practically running, trying not to be late for their classes or the ones who are carelessly chattering and being in everyone's way. Chenle hates all of them and just wants to go home. 

"Come on, only two more classes, we can do it!" Jisung says, putting his hand on Chenle's shoulder reassuringly.

And he's right. In just a few hours, Chenle will be free to do whatever he wants, today's lectures just a distant memory until the day before the test when he'll cram the whole night and ultimately get an okay grade. It's a good system, he thinks, one that has proved to be successful over the years and the one that works the best for him.

Thinking about it, it's really not a bad day. After school, he'll go home and hopefully hang out with Xiao Jun and Jaehyun, since he knows both of them will be home later. Yes, he knows their schedules by heart, which is not weird at all. If not, he'll just convince Jisung to come over and maybe play games with him for a few hours. Either way, it'll be good.

With a smile on his face and a newfound will to live, Chenle steps into the classroom, while Jisung trails after him, so close to his back and clumsy as always that he accidentally steps on Chenle's heel, successfully making him go on without one of his shoes. "Yah, Park Jisung!" Chenle says, as he turns around to glare at his friend, who sends him an apologetic smile in return. As he gets down to put his shoe back on, someone bumps into him, almost knocking him over with how strong the impact was.

"Sorry, man, I didn't see you there!" the guy says and Chenle recognizes that it's Soobin, the tallest and clumsiest person on the planet, probably even clumsier than Jisung and that's saying a lot. For someone so slow and sluggish, Soobin turns out to be very strong, judging by the throbbing pain Chenle feels in his shoulder and the bruise that's probably forming in the very same place. 

"Ugh, I hate school!"

When he finally gets home, Chenle finds Jaehyun in the kitchen, chatting with their mom while he waits for her to finish preparing lunch. 

"You're home early," Chenle smiles at his mother and opts to go for a fist-bump with Jaehyun instead of a verbal greeting. His brother dodges his hand in the last second and smacks him on the head instead. 

Chenle whines, turning around to face their mother, hoping to get some sympathy from her, but she just chuckles. "What?" she asks, when Chenle looks at her in shock, "It was kind of funny."

"He always does stuff like that to me, stuff I know he would never do to Xiao Jun!" Chenle presses on, glaring at Jaehyun before he turns to look at their mother pleadingly, just wanting an appropriate reaction from her, like grounding Jaehyun for life or something similar that he completely deserves. 

"Baby, don't be overdramatic," his mother says in the end. It's clear to Chenle that she's not taking this seriously, not just because she's siding with Jaehyun, but from the way she's carelessly walking around the kitchen, humming along to some annoying tune that's playing on the radio. 

No one ever takes him seriously, it's not fair!

Sulking, Chenle sits down, deciding that he should maybe let it go after all. Deep down, he knows he's probably blowing this out of proportion, knows that he's particularly sensitive about this topic and that's exactly why he decides to be the bigger person. That won't be too hard, he thinks, given that Jaehyun is clearly inferior to him in every way, especially when it comes to his intellect. Well, maybe, just maybe, he's winning in the looks department, but Chenle's not too upset about that. After all, Jaehyun needs to achieve at least something in his life and his looks are probably his only ticket to getting there. As much as Chenle hates his brother right now, he wouldn't take that away from him.

So, he sits down, albeit reluctantly, and decides to drop this topic. He's more hungry than angry anyway, and whatever his mom is cooking smells delicious. Just as he's about to compliment her, Jaehyun opens his mouth and ruins everything once again.

"Yeah, don't be overdramatic," he says, mimicking their mother's words from earlier, but making them sound different somehow, more malicious, "Baby." The last word is said so condescendingly, laced with fake sweetness that wouldn't even fool their mother, and when Chenle looks up at Jaehyun, there's a mocking smile on his brother's face.

Chenle loses it then. Later, he'll probably regret it, both because he said things he didn't actually mean and because this will seriously set back all the progress he's made in regard to his plan, but right now, he simply doesn't care.

"I hate you so much!" he screams angrily, getting up from his seat. "And I hate Xiao Jun, too!"

He doesn't even wait to hear what his brother will reply, too mad to stay here a second longer, before he storms off towards his room.

"What did Xiao Jun do?" his mom yells after him. "Don't talk about your brother like that when he's not here, especially without any reason!"

Whatever, Chenle thinks. Xiao Jun would side with Jaehyun anyway, if he was here.

When he's about to enter his room, he hears Jaehyun's annoying voice from downstairs, practically singing his next words. "We hate you too!"

Chenle slams the door behind himself.

Not his proudest moment, sure, but what else could he have done?

Why does he even try? Why does he constantly keep trying when his brothers clearly don't deserve his love?

Annoyed and a little sad, he flops down onto the bed, too exhausted from all the drama to even think about doing his homework right now. His stomach growls, reminding him how hungry he is, but Chenle would rather die than go back there. He'll sleep this off and everything will be better when he wakes up.

Nothing is better when he wakes up. Chenle feels just as shitty as he did before going to sleep, only now he also has a slight headache and he feels like he might die if he doesn't eat something right this second.

Groaning, he checks the time before getting up, realising that he slept for three hours. It's a miracle how he's still alive after not eating for so long, honestly.

He also sees a message from Jisung, asking him if he wants to come over and play video games. Three hours ago, before the incident, Chenle would've probably said yes, but right now he doesn't feel like doing anything. Except for eating, of course. He definitely feels like eating. In fact, he feels like eating all the food inside the house so that Jaehyun could starve to death.

"Let's not go there," he tells himself, taking a deep breath. "Let's not think like that." 

He's on his way to convince himself to think positively, when there's a knock on the door. Huh, so Jaehyun actually has it in him to apologize, who would've thought.

"Come in!"

The door opens slowly and then Jisung's stepping into his room, carrying a plate of pasta with him. "Your mom told me to bring this to you. She said you'll probably be hungry."

Chenle feels like he could cry happy tears at the sight. "I'm starving!" he says, grabbing the plate from Jisung's hands eagerly. As soon as he takes the first bite, he immediately feels better, like none of his worries are that important anymore.

Jisung sits on the chair, looking at Chenle with amusement as the latter keeps taking huge bites and trying to say something in between them, only to end up taking another bite instead.

As hungry as Chenle was, he's never had a huge appetite, so after finishing about half of his plate, he's full. "Huh. I thought I could eat like, two plates at least. Thought I would have to go downstairs to get more."

When he looks up at Jisung, the other is still giving him this look, a weird mixture of fondness and disbelief. 

"What?" Chenle asks.

In all honesty, he's happy to see Jisung, even though the two spent the whole first part of the day together. Chenle feels like annoyance is slowly starting to leave his body and not just because of the meal he just had. It's always nice, being with Jisung. It gets his mind off of things, because even if he wanted to think about his problems while the other boy is around, they always end up playing games or watching movies or just talking about stupid shit, that Chenle doesn't even have time to get lost in his thoughts. That might be because he's generally easily distracted, but Chenle likes to think that it's always better with Jisung around than without him. That's what best friends are for, anyway. 

"Nothing. You looked kinda ridiculous just now," Jisung says, laughing when Chenle throws a pillow at him. "But you were cute. Like a hungry baby."

Chenle bursts out laughing. "Explain to me how a hungry baby is cute. Babies cry when they're hungry and that's not a pleasant sound. I would know because -"

"Because you're an uncle and you spend a lot of time with your nephew," Jisung recites, like he's repeated this sentence many times before.

Perhaps he has, but Chenle will not apologize for talking about his precious nephew, the light of his life, the only person that never disappointed him.

"Either way, your comparison is invalid," Chenle concludes, throwing his body back on the bed. "Why did you come over, anyway? I just woke up, by the way, that's why I didn't answer your text."

"See, you are a baby!" Jisung says, pointing his finger accusingly at Chenle. "Who sleeps during the day? Babies, that's who!"

Chenle scoffs at Jisung's smug face. "You're really pushing the baby thing, huh? But, anyway, I had a fight with Jaehyun. It was bad. Like, I got so angry at him, I don't think I've ever been that angry before." 

Upon hearing this, his best friend doesn't look as concerned as Chenle would like him to be, barely changing his expression. "What happened?" he asks, but Chenle can tell that he doesn't quite understand how serious this is.

He sits up. "Jisung, I'm being serious! It's never been this bad before."

"Okay, tell me what happened."

"Well, basically, I went for a fist bump and he dodged it and smacked me on the head instead," Chenle says, trying to summarize it the best he can. While doing that, he realizes that there's not much to summarize, but that doesn't mean that the whole thing wasn't horrible.

Jisung keeps looking at him, waiting for him to continue. "And then what happened?" he asks after Chenle doesn't say anything.

"Well, nothing really, that was the gist of it, but you don't realize how mean he was being. He also told me he hated me! No, his exact words were: We hate you too! And," Chenle raises his voice when he remembers one more in the line of terrible things Jaehyun said to him earlier, "He called me a baby! But, like, in a completely condescending way, not like you did before."

When he's done with his rant, it feels easier to breathe, almost like a weight has been lifted off his chest. None of his problems are solved, but it's still nice to be heard and understood.

"Are you insane?! That was your big fight? That's just two brothers messing around! I've witnessed way worse things between the two of you and you never reacted like this," Jisung says, flapping his hands around in order to get his point across. As far as Chenle's concerned, the only thing he manages to do is make himself look like an angry bird.

"Well, you had to be there!" 

Jisung stands up and comes to sit on the bed next to Chenle. 

"Chenle," he starts and Chenle hates this already, this lecture that hasn't even properly started yet. It's coming, though, he knows it's coming, because he knows this look on Jisung's face very well. He sees it a lot when Jisung thinks he's being ridiculous and is about to call him out on it. 

"You're being completely unreasonable and you're blowing this out of proportion. Obviously, you're very sensitive when it comes to your relationship with your brothers, and it's gotten even worse lately. I think you need to have an honest conversation with both of them, tell them everything that's been bothering you."

"Yeah, that's not happening," Chenle says immediately after Jisung stops talking for a second. If Jisung wasn't actually finished with his lecture yet, well, it's his fault for making a dramatic pause, long enough for Chenle to interject. "But, thanks for that, it's been a while since we played counselors. Next time, maybe I can be the counselor for once and you'll be my hopeless client."

The joke doesn't seem to land that well or maybe Jisung is just tired of his bullshit, if the unimpressed look on his face is any indication. Either way, Chenle groans, accepting his defeat.

"Fine! Whatever. You're probably right. To some extent at least. Anyway, let's not talk about it anymore. Games or a movie?" he asks, hoping that Jisung will just let it go.

Thankfully, his friend has enough sense or maybe he just knows Chenle too well. "Mortal Kombat," he says, dragging Chenle off the bed to sit in front of the TV. "Get the consoles! I'm in the mood to kick your ass!"

Chenle laughs loudly, passing Jisung one of the consoles, before he sits down next to him. "You're crazy. It's you who's going down, obviously."

They bicker a bit more before they start the game and Chenle's competition mode turns on, preventing him from thinking about anything else. He wins, obviously, and Jisung tries to make excuses for himself like he always does. They have fun, but then Jisung leaves and Chenle is left alone again.

Somewhere around 9, Jaehyun and Xiao Jun come into his room.

"Hey, Lele," Xiao Jun says, plopping down on the bed next to him. "Whatcha doin'?"

"Homework," Chenle lies, quickly looking around and pointing at the nearest book. The subtle art of not giving a fuck, the title reads. Dammit. Well, that could be considered as life's homework, so Chenle decides he wasn't that far off.

Xiao Jun snickers. "Liar. Hang out with us! We're bored."

"And you're not mad anymore, right?" Jaehyun asks carefully, sitting down as well. "Obviously I was joking, but you kinda took it too seriously. Is something going on?"

Chenle weighs his options. Is another serious conversation what he needs right now? Probably not. Besides, they've never been like that, he and his brothers, definitely not the ones for heartfelt discussions.

"Nothing's going on," he ends up saying, "You were just a dick as always and I wanted to kill you for like a few hours, but I'm over it now."

That earns him a disbelieving laugh from Jaehyun. "Wow, okay. Well, I'll take it. I just want my baby brother to love me again," he says dramatically, jumping on Chenle and knocking him down on the bed.

Chenle starts laughing hysterically when his brother starts tickling him mercilessly. "Stop, stop, stop!" he screams at him, and then when that doesn't help, "I'll kill you once I'm free again!"

Soon enough, Xiao Jun joins them, coming to Chenle's rescue. "I'll help you, little brother," he says solemnly, throwing himself on Jaehyun. 

"Jun, I'm actually in pain, your fingers are like knives, what the fuck?!"

When they finally calm down, Chenle feels happier than he's felt in a while. 

"Okay, so, let's talk about Jisung," Xiao Jun says suddenly, catching Chenle completely off guard. He wasn't planning on talking about it today, he didn't have time to prepare! How is he gonna answer all of Xiao Jun's invasive questions like this?

"Uh, what's there to talk about?" he asks, chuckling awkwardly. Fuck, he definitely sounds weird and suspicious, Xiao Jun's going to see right through him.

"Well, he was here for a few hours and the door was closed the whole time. Whatever did you do, all alone and unsupervised?"

"Jun, gross!" Chenle and Jaehyun say at the same time, while Jaehyun throws a pillow at his twin brother.

"What?" Xiao Jun asks. "You're young and wild and free!"

Chenle snorts. "Jisung is definitely not wild!"

Xiao Jun smirks, giving him a greasy smile. "And you are?"

"Again, gross!" Jaehyun says, smacking Xiao Jun on the head. 

"I'm just acknowledging that Chenle's all grown up. You're one of us now!" his brother says, patting him on the shoulder.

Chenle laughs weakly, feeling bad about the whole thing for the first time since it all started.

"But, are you bringing him to the party on Friday?" Jaehyun asks, genuine curiosity lacing his question.

Chenle nods, but wonders if the whole thing even makes sense anymore. "Yeah, we're going together," he says, hoping he doesn't sound as unsure as he feels.

He hears his brothers' whoops and hollers, but his mind is somewhere else. Maybe it's time to stop this whole thing, come clean or, better yet, stage a fake breakup? But what would he gain from that? Would his brothers still love him the same? Of course they would, the reasonable part of his brain supplies. 'You're one of us now,' Xiao Jun's previous sentence rings in his mind, courtesy of the other part of his brain, the one that's overdramatic and often irrational.

Choosing to trust the second one, mostly because it's louder and more assertive, Chenle comes to the conclusion. Starting from tomorrow, operation 'Convince Jaehyun and Xiao Jun that I have a boyfriend and make them love me the most' is getting even more intense, all for the right cause, of course. Maybe his brothers believe him now, but he still needs to keep the charade going if he wants it to stay that way.

The situation is getting more and more complicated, Chenle concludes, but as he looks in front of himself at his brothers' smiling faces, he decides that it's worth it.


End file.
